And yet another reason not to get a Harley. Went for a ride yesterday with a friend that has a 2012 Electra Glide Classic with the 103c.i. Engine. As we pulled onto the highway heading home he tromps the throttle so I return the gesture. I look over as I shift to third and have him by a good three bike lengths and the TBird just keeps walking away. As he pulls up beside me at the next light he says "you got a hemi in that bike or what?" Being that he was riding single and I was two up, I'm feeling pretty good about the Big Bore kit my dealer installed about now...

I just traded my 2008 Nightster (blacked out sportster) 1200 for the S3. Im 25, so the Harley wasnt for me, even though I had it for a year, and put on numerous mods.. 14" apes internally wired, air intake, exhaust, fuel ecu, etc

Hello fellow S3 riders. I wanted to take a quick poll and see if anyone ever got the itch to jump ship, sell their speedy and get in to the cruiser riding life style. I’ve been toying with the idea of slowing it down a bit and getting in to a Harley Soft tail or possibly a tourer like the Road Kind or Street glide. I currently have a 2009 S3 (3800 miles), love it to death, but somewhere deep inside I really just enjoy just a relaxing cruise. I had metric cruisers (Yamaha, Honda etc) in the past but I really like the look and feel of the Harley. I’d love to keep both but it wouldn’t make sense $$ wise, and I barley have time to ride one. Maybe it’s my age (42)?! Or maybe I just need a temporary change. Anyone ever get that feeling of a need for change? Any regrets after the change?

First bike, '72 Honda CB350...rode its balls off in high school (class of '98...not '72...lol). Rode my dad's Sportster 1000 (early 70's) a few times in college. Bought a mid-90's Katana 600 in the late 90's. Bought a R1 in 2001. Got out of riding for a few years. Bought my Speed Triple in 2012. Rode a friend's '05 Fat Boy (with some upgrades) about a year ago now...felt like a death machine. There have been few times when I felt less in control of my destiny...it felt fat, slow, unmaneuvrable (not sure that's a word), and just plain dangerous. I felt like if a deer or car came out in front of me, I'd be screwed. On my S3, I feel like I can flick it over or scrub off 30 mph quickly if something pops up. It feels much safer and is sure much more fun for me to ride. If I could keep myself from banging out 140 mph stretches every time I had it out, that'd make it even better...lol. On the flipside, I rode a buddy's Suzuki VStrom (as cult-like of a following as Speed Triples) and really enjoyed it...handles, comfortable, ample storage, warm (I live in upstate NY), fair amount of torque, and feels like you're riding a motorcycle. Of course, his HD Street King sounds and looks good too on the rare opportunities when I let him ride in front of me...lol.

Was in the US this week (Quincy Illinois) working and one of the guys in the office kindly let me have a spin on His Harley, don't know the model but it was 80 cu inch engine. Nice to try something else on an 85 degree summer evening never and I mean never could it substitute the S3. Brakes were shocking, a U turn was a mighty challenge. Having said that it sounded great and was very shiny. Just done about 80 miles on the S3 on a lovely day here in the UK and for sure it will be many years before I consider a change for a cruiser of any type.

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